1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a motorized back scrubbing system that utilizes a series of motors to rotate brush heads to scrub a person's back, the unit removably attachable to a flat surface such as the wall of a shower enclosure.
2. Background of the Prior Art
When a person bathes or showers, their back tends to be a particularly difficult area to clean. Most people simply lack the flexibility to be able to effectively reach all parts of the back and even if all parts can be reached, to apply sufficient pressure with the cleaning implement being used such as a wash cloth, a bar of soap, or simply the person's hands. As a person gets older, this back washing problem becomes exacerbated due to the effects of aging which tends to rob people of some of their flexibility and dexterity so that a clean back becomes even more of a challenge. A person who has suffered an injury, such as a torn rotator cuff or is simply suffering from a shoulder ailment, such as bursitis or a frozen shoulder, finds particular difficulty in the back cleaning process.
One solution that can be employed to effectively clean the back is to simply have an assistant present during bathing or showering so that the assistant can clean the person's back. The assistant can be a spouse or significant other or if the person is disabled another family member or a professional such as a home health care provider. While very effective, an assistant is not a realistic solution to many. Many people live alone and lack the presence of a second person who can assist during bathing and are otherwise healthy and do not need home health care. During travel, especially business travel, many people travel alone so that a spouse or significant other may not be on hand to provide the needed second person. Many people who live in some form of assisted living, desire to maintain as much independence and dignity as possible and do not want to have a person assisting with the rather intimate task of bathing unless necessary.
To address such problems, handheld back brushes have been proposed. A handheld back brush has an elongate handle and a washing or scrubbing implement on a distal end of the handle so that the user grasps the handle of the brush, reaches over the shoulder or around the torso, and uses the implement on the handle for the cleaning process. Back brushes come in a wide variety of styles from the simple to the very complex.
A typical handheld back brush can prove quite effective to a person who has good range of motion in his or her shoulders. Such a person can maneuver the implement end of the brush to their back side for cleaning. However, a person who has limited motion often is unable to effectively maneuver the implement end of the brush around his or her body onto the back. However, even to a person who has appropriate flexibility, the handheld back brush often proves cumbersome to use as the person must maneuver the brush into various positions, often banging into the walls of the bathing enclosure and often employing each hand in turn, in order to effectively get all parts of the back scrubbed clean with the device. In short order, the person's hands get tired of holding and maneuvering the brush, especially if the brush is relatively long and has a relatively heavy implement end.
To address the problems associated with handheld back brushes, non-handheld back brushes have been proposed. Such devices are brushing or scrubbing elements that are mounted in some fashion to a surface, typically to a wall of the bathing enclosure or other appropriate mounting surface associated with the bathing enclosure. Such non-handheld brushes, which come in a wide variety of architectures, come in one of two broad forms, static and dynamic. A static device has its brushing implement in a fixed position relative to its mount so that once mounted, the brushing element does not move. A dynamic device has its brushing element rotate or otherwise articulate under the control of a motor, such rotation helping with the overall back cleaning process as well as adding an element of soothing comfort. While such devices, either static or dynamic, eliminate the need for a person to hold the brushing element, such devices are not without their own drawbacks. Many devices require alterations to the surface upon which they are to be mounted in order to mount such devices. Many people are not willing or able to make such alterations. Additionally, such devices position the brush element in a single fixed position so that a user must move his or her back up and down and side to side in order for the person's entire back to be cleaned by the device. Such maneuvering by the person may be awkward and difficult, if not impossible to perform, depending on the specific mount configuration and such maneuvering fails to contribute to expected soothing comfort—performing yoga-like maneuvers in a bathtub or shower enclosure may get the person's back clean, but may not prove to be overly fun.
What is needed is a mounted back brush system overcomes the above stated problems found in the art by allowing the system to be mounted at an appropriate location within a bathing enclosure without the need to make permanent alterations to any part of the bathing enclosure. Such a system must require little in the way of effort from the user in using the device to clean the person's entire back. Advantageously, such a system should be of relatively simple design and construction and be easy to use.